O-Dark-Thirty

So many Pastors today preach a "name it and claim it" philosophy, and they back it up with Bible verses like this one: "whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." The thing is, when you take pieces of the Bible you can use them to back up almost any belief you want to espouse. The Bible is a complete book, a picture of who God is, given to us to know more about God from a human perspective. You cannot take it in bits and pieces. For instance, the quote above was something Jesus said directly to Peter. Pastors will tell you it applies to us all, but that does not mean we can decide what to do and Heaven will okay it with a big stamp of approval. We don't bend God to our will - ever. That's not the purpose of prayer, that's not the reason to become or remain a Christian. God is not some Heavenly Grandfather peering down and winking at our indiscretions and looking for ways to bl...

Darling asked me whether God delivered His promises from Jeremiah 29:11-14 to me. First of all, God always delivers on His promises. The question is do we recognize them when we get them. Sometimes the promises are conditional. We act, and God works. Let's look at what He promised us here. "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “ plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future . Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you . You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you ,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity . I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile .” These passages are full of God's promises. Yes, this message is written to the exiled Israelites in Babylon, as shown by Jer 29:10: Th...

Just a quick note to let you know we're still around. I haven't written anything in two weeks because I'm SICK. Man, getting old is for the birds. I remember getting a cold when I was younger and I shook it off in a couple days. Now it takes two weeks. Darling caught this bug from me, but with her it always moves to bronchitis, so she's really having a horrible time with coughing. I did go see a specialist about my migraines. I'll keep you posted on that, thanks for asking. And my monitor went bizarro on me, so I switched it with a spare from the other room. In Starbound, I figured out how to make an Erchius reactor - everyone should have one. The same technique can be used to create healing water, which isn't useful since they didn't give us the ability to make potions with it, but it does glow a nice blue, so you can use it to highlight constructions. Or use lava. Or both. Thanks for reading. Back to my bottle of medicine and off to bed!

Yesterday, I wrote about Belief. That's the basis of your entire life, if you think about it. Your beliefs frame who you are in this world. Many wise people have said that it isn't what life tosses at you that counts - it's how you respond. Your response is in your control, not life. How does this relate to the Bible? If you want to hear God speak, read the Bible out loud. I believe the Bible is the Word of God. Period. That's not really open for debate. Sorry. Disagree if you like, and I'll respect your disagreement. I spent half a century thinking about the Bible and how it relates to my life and that is my conclusion. Interestingly, the Bible is more than that for me. It is full of Good Stuff, and that's the kind of book that makes me come back again and again. Wondering how to behave in life? Romans 12.  I have a story for that. (Sorry, kids.) Years ago an old woman was asked how she managed to be so full of grace during all the long years ...

We each choose what to believe in our lives. We should choose wisely. In the movie Secondhand Lions (2003), Hub says " Sometimes the things that may or may not be true are the things a man needs to believe in the most. That people are basically good; that honor, courage, and virtue mean everything; that power and money, money and power mean nothing; that good always triumphs over evil; and I want you to remember this, that love... true love never dies. You remember that, boy. You remember that. Doesn't matter if it's true or not. You see, a man should believe in those things, because those are the things worth believing in." I've always like that line, and if I had a better memory, I'd memorize it. The online dictionary (dictionary.com) defines the verb to believe as " to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so." We don't argue over f...

We pray for all sorts of reasons. Whether we like it or not, most of us learned to pray in school, usually just before a test. So, yeah, there will always be prayer in school. Luke notes in Chapter 11, verse 1 that "One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, 'Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.'" Jesus taught the disciples what is commonly called The Lord's prayer. Luke continues: He said to them, “When you pray, say:“‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’” That's the NIV version and isn't exactly as I learned it in Sunday School a half century ago, but let's note a few things. We praise God and acknowledge His will, yet address Him as His children. We ask for our needs, not necessarily out wants. We remember...

A Prayer Rap Don't Name it to Claim it That surely will Profane it Just Say it and Pray it Ask God to let you Portray it We know this He shows this that He is the King of all Justice God Raised Him We praise Him In our Actions display Him So lift Voices Make Holy Choices 'cuz by His wounds we are all His Adore God Implore God Throughout the World Restore God With Holy Hands In Holy Lands Listen and Obey God's commands With Broken Hearts Unspoken Hearts We thank You and Love You and put no others Above you Your Will be Done Through your Worthy Son Amen